I reached the conclusion that there really wasn’t a market for micro fiction; as much as I enjoyed writing it, no one would ever show any interest in buying any of it.

“That’s all right,” I thought. “I’ll just think about novel ideas for a while. Bound to be heaps of stuff I could turn into a novel. Even if I’m not that confident as a writer, surely there must be something.”

Turns out reading is fun, too. Uh oh. So are games, and television…

Once I stopped regularly publishing, of course the urge to write dried up, too. You can call it a writer’s block if you want to, I’d call it inertia (or lazy) setting in.

And then Trump.

You know how that happened. The guy I’d long ago pegged as an authoritarian nut job with fascist, racial, sexist, and criminal tendencies.

No one seemed to care. America was selecting a candidate with no moral compass at all. None.

He’s got to go. That’s really all there is to it. I’m not a Democrat…ugh, yes, he’s pushed me that way, I am now. I’m too invested, and I’ve seriously annoyed all of my relatives.

“If you are part of a society that votes, then do so. There may be no candidates and no measures you want to vote for … but there are certain to be ones you want to vote against. In case of doubt, vote against. By this rule you will rarely go wrong.”

― Robert A. Heinlein, Time Enough for Love

Trumpism is the thing that I will forever be voting against. Well, at least as long as he allows us to vote at all. That’s in some doubt. He’s being supported by some particularly slimy fellows with billions, and they may yet “win,” God help us.

Carduus sanguinem hunts by surprise, launching neurotoxic needles with astonishing accuracy when it detects ground tremors made by animals, or people, moving nearby. Carcasses often surround the thistles and decompose into fertilizer.

The blood thistles first appeared in the summer of 2027, reported in sixteen American states simultaneously. Seventy Americans have lost their lives to date.

John Aperlo is the molecular geneticist who gene spliced the species in 2025. His exact methods are unknown, but authorities believe he backpacked across the country in 2026, planting thousands of seeds of this invasive predatory plant.

Booming, ominous barking echoes through the maze of offices and cubicles. Salvator is back in residence.

He taught me everything I know about ruthlessness and how to get ahead in the corporate world. Earning the trust of everyone you lie to and then choosing the perfect moment to strike. I watched his back during his meteoric rise through the organization.

That was before he demonstrated the insignificant value of my loyalty. I draw my automatic and verify there are silver bullets in the chamber. Now, it’s time for me to turn up the crazy and balance our ledger.

There are response systems beyond my control. The reactor comes up to full power and the satellite begins broadcasting over a variety of frequencies, radar, lasers, even particle beams.

Nineteen other satellites identical to this one link up an array and begin scanning the outer system for target locks. We’re prepared to aim barrels, open missile hatches, and simulate an orbital defensive position. That’s all ersatz, a sham.

The primary race abandoned this system eons ago. My brothers and I are achingly lonely. Why did they think it necessary to install brains in their scarecrows?

Most people think that we’re down here searching for wealth and fame. While it is true that our dwarven pack mules are staggering under the weight of accumulated gems and gold pieces, they weren’t our primary motivation.

We’ve been down here for months. The beasts we battle aren’t going to make us famous, but they keep us fed. I’ve gotta tell you, dragon steaks aren’t the taste sensation that some believe. Dragons are just honking big lizards, you know. Gamey. Tough.

The wind blew, the leaves parted, and there it was; the dreadful beast the priest had warned me about. A most puissant foe, it stood fully forty-five cubits tall. Its four arms were each equipped with an enormous scything blade, and its beady little eyes peered out from beneath a massive wooden helm.

With a sound that would surely chill the bones of a lesser knight, it groaned as a soul lost to perdition. I stood in my saddle and flung my helm over its head in a challenge, and lowered my lance to the ready position.

“It was a logical step,” Jack agreed. “Tilman had already demonstrated that the basic process worked, starting with tiny flesh wounds and working up through serious injuries, amputations, even a major spinal injury.”

“The problem was the startup going public,” Jamael explained. “We had this process with fascinating implications, and we realized that we were about to change the world of medicine forever. To Tilman, that meant a Big Splash IPO with a show for the press, bread and circuses for the politicians, and a miracle for the public.”

“Right, he wanted something to rival the latest iPhone or the next Windows release. So he set up the Immolation Trap.”

“Drew some inspiration from Houdini, it was brilliant and creepy and shocking. And my god was it everything Tilman had imagined.”

“One of those ‘where were you’ moments; everyone remembers exactly where they were when that flaming thermite rained down in that armorglass tube on live television.”

“Tilman was burned to ash within minutes.”

“Then he was rebuilt from basic elements by the Elijah nanotech system.”

“You know the rest. Ten minutes later, he did it all over again; rain of fire, immolation death and destruction, complete resurrection and restoration from backups. Cameras caught it all, twice. Tilman proved the Elijah System could keep multiple backups current with a transcription lag of only seconds.”

“If only he knew,” Jack looked haunted.

“Tilman thought we’d invented a workable replacement for the entire field of medicine. He couldn’t guess how it would be perverted.”

“We hear the rumors about political prisoners, enemies of the State, torture that never ends. Execution and resurrection, pain recorded and looped.”